Share Files via Bluetooth On Your Unlocked Windows Phone 7 [Homebrew]

The Dark Force Team has really taken it upon itself to make Windows Phone 7 the platform it should have been all along. After their release of the awesome custom Mango ROMs, they have brought one of the most wanted feature to WP7; Bluetooth file transfer. Whenever you introduce WP7 to a new user, one of the first missing features they comment on is file sharing via Bluetooth. Microsoft might have enhanced the Mango platform’s security by taking this measure, but it proves to be a huge drawback for an average user. Fortunately, if you have a fully unlocked device (that is, if your phone has a custom ROM on it), now it is possible to send and receive any type of data on your device. Read on to know more about this useful homebrew.

The app is named rather simply, BT File Transfer, and it should work with any WP7 device which is fully unlocked (not just interop or developer unlocked). Using the app, you will be able to share file with any Bluetooth-enabled device, be it Android or any feature phone having Bluetooth file sharing capabilities. Using the app is a little complicated, but if you have managed to flash a custom ROM to your WP7, this app shouldn’t pose any difficulties. The first thing you need to do is to flash the XAP file to your unlocked WP7, using any method you prefer (some of them are listed here). Once the file has been flashed, or downloaded via Internet Explorer in your phone, launch it. If a failure message shows up, this means that your device is not fully unlocked, and the app won’t work for you. In case all goes well, you will be asked to reboot the phone. Now go to the Settings menu in your device, and toggle on Bluetooth. The phone will look for nearby devices, and then you can pair with it easily.

If you want to send a file to another person, you will be taken to your phone’s file system. Admittedly, this isn’t a very intuitive way of looking for the exact photo or file you want to share, but it will have to do for now. While receiving a file, it is better if you stay on the Bluetooth page in the phone’s Settings. By default, all received data goes to the My Documents folder in the phone, but you can change that in the app’s settings. If the file being received is a XAP file, it will be installed automatically as soon as the transfer is complete.

You can find the DFT Bluetooth File Transfer app’s XAP file at the source link given below, along with detailed discussions and additional information.

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